Mass Effect: Vanguard
by Spencer Whitworth
Summary: A Biotic youth joins the Eclipse mercenary band after a catastrophe on Proteus.
1. Black Sheep

**Mass Effect: Vanguard**

**Chapter 1**

**Black Sheep**

The sea, the endless expanses of saltwater and blue sky, it was all that Jayden knew in his entire life. The smell of the sea air, the rush of the tides, and the humidity had become indispensable in his existence, he hated that. He stood out on the shore and watched the waves crash, and then recede whence they came, it relaxed him to a degree, and he was able to let out a deep exhale. This tranquility, of course, didn't last past a few minutes before one of his headaches began to flare up. Jayden put his face in his hand and closed his eyes, trying to avert his attention from the pain pounding in his head. This was also rendered futile when something struck him from behind, knocking him to the ground flat on his stomach.

Jayden knew the perpetrator before he even managed to get to his feet and regain his composure. As he turned around to face the threat, he set eyes on a group of boys his age, barely eighteen years old, they taunted him relentlessly. The group pointed and laughed as they continued throwing beach debris at him. Finally, the barrage ceased, and Jayden relaxed from his pain-cringing state, one of the agressors stepping before the rest of the group.

He stood tall, built, and domineering. He looked Jayden in the eyes, and let out a smirk as he crossed his arms. "Well well, if it isn't the token freak of Proteus. What the hell are you doin' on this fine afternoon?" he said in a condescending and arrogant tone, "This really isn't the day to bother me Darius" Jayden replied calmly, wiping the fresh blood from a mild cut on his chin. "What do you plan to do about it kid? You're nothing but a fucking coward, a coward and a freak of nature. You won't do a damn thing." Darius retorted, his gang behind him, laughing at their leader's _witty_ comeback. Jayden took a few steps forward and stared Darius down, "My biotics don't make me a freak you son of a bitch. I'm sick and tired of you, day in and day out treating me like garbage. I dare you, make one more comment, start with me today, and I promise it'll be the last thing you ever do. Do you understand me?".

Darius couldn't help but laugh at the threat. His ego was at its apex, and this little punk was insulting him like he had something to prove. Darius cracked his knuckles and grabbed Jayden by the throat, and in a hateful rage, tightened his grip. "You know what you little shit? You don't get to make those demands of me, and I'm just as sick of you. You're gonna wish you hadn't just stepped to me, because now I'm gonna snap your fucking neck where you stand."

This was it, Jayden couldn't take it anymore. His hands trembled in hatred, and his body began to glow in an azure light. With a scream and a palm thrusted forward, Jayden launched Darius forward at an incredible speed. Darius shot forward, knocking over his cohorts and continuing to jettison forth. Then, with a snap, he slammed full force into a flagpole, proudly displaying the symbol of the Systems Alliance Military. "Wrong move" said Jayden cynically.

Jayden continued to glow, walking towards Darius' gang of miscreants. Some were just getting back on their feet, others were slowly backing away from him in fear. Jayden breathed heavily and continued to walk forward, clenching up his fist again, he gritted his teeth, shook in fury, and launched a shockwave of incredible size before him. The shockwave proved to be too much for Darius' gang, as they were slung and tossed about like a child's ragdoll, coming to rest scattered about the tides.

Jayden finally managed to come to his senses, he let out a deep exhale once again, similar to when he was looking out at the vast expanse of sea. The azure light faded from around his body, and he finally came to fully realize what he had done. He quickly ran over to where Darius lay, he was slumped over in the sand, contorted in an inconceivable way. Jayden checked his pulse, nothing at all, Darius was dead. Jayden begin to panic, taking quick breaths and looking around rapidly, now shaking from fear as opposed to anger.

"Shit... Shit... What have I done?" Jayden groaned as he began to run towards the water. He looked out into the sea, he didn't see as much as a single sign of Darius' lackeys. "I killed them... I killed them all... I'm a fucking _Monster_!" Jayden screamed as he fell to his knees and looked out into the rolling abyss. It was at that moment that Jayden heard the sound of a thermal clip, falling and sizzling in the sand. He turned around to find Captain Braughn, head of security for the colony, his rifle barrel pointed directly before Jayden's eyes. The Captain kept his rifle raised at Jayden and spoke neutrally "Jayden, come with me. I saw everything... And I don't want to hurt you, just follow me back to the colony. I'll take you home, and we can sort everything out there. The colonists are going to want answers". Jayden let out a sob, stood up, and retorted in a choked whisper "Okay... Let's go."

The two trekked through the sand and up to a parked security shuttle. The Captain opened the doors and the two seated themselves inside. As the shuttle took off, and began speeding back towards the colony, the Captain Spoke again. "I know Darius and his friends have been harassing you for a long time... But we never thought things would escalate to such violence. Your mother didn't bring you up like this Jayden, we know you aren't naturally violent. However, what's done is done, the Alliance will have to be notified... Their parents and families will be out for blood... I would suggest getting away from the colony, hell... The planet even, to avoid this whole mess". Jayden didn't say a word, he remained silent as his mind was torn apart in thought. He was a murderer, he had killed twelve people, twelve mothers in tears, twelve families shattered, twelve sons in graves lining the beaches of Proteus.

The shuttle set down in the center of the colony, as The Captain and Jayden emerged, several bystanders stared in confusion. Jayden hung his head in shame, knowing the awful truth that they weren't even remotely aware of. The two began to walk towards Jayden's home in the distance, a walk that felt as if it were two eternities to him. Captain Braughn spoke again discretely, "Just stay calm Jayden, we're almost there". As they continued on, more and more people assembled and followed the two, murmuring and brandishing looks of surprise. Jayden could truly feel the weight of the world bear down on him, as he grew more and more guilty of his crime. He finally raised his head to find the door to his home open, and he stepped inside, lowering his head again and staring at the cold metallic floor.

"Your mother has been informed of the situation son, I have to go, I have a report to file to the Alliance, and a lot of questioning ahead of me." The Captain uttered, succinct enough for a goodbye in his head as he walked away. Jayden stared at the floor for a good while before he heard a voice cut through the silence of the moment. "Jayden... How did this happen?" He looked up to find his mother standing before him, black hair hanging elegantly in her face. He said abruptly "I was sick of them..." as he clenched his fists again. His mother strode over to him and held him, "If the Alliance finds you, they'll have you killed for what you did here today. I don't condone what you did, and I'm very disappointed that you resorted to such violence... But I won't let them have you killed because of it. They don't understand the situation, they just see you as a murderer, I know you only did it to defend yourself. But the Alliance won't understand sweetheart, that's why you'll have to leave Proteus as soon as possible" she said softly.

Jayden cringed as he heard this, he hated this planet, but he would have to leave behind everything he had ever known. His mother continued "Jayden... I know this is difficult. I promise you, this isn't goodbye forever. We'll see each other again, I promise sweetheart. But right now you have to get off this world before they take you. Captain Braughn will take you to the spaceport tomorrow, and you'll be on the first ship out of here in the morning". Jayden realized that she was right, he didn't like the idea of running away, but maybe he would have a chance to atone for his mistakes. "Where will I go, mom?" Jayden asked quietly, his mother replied with a look of worry on her face "The ship drops off at Omega... It's a tough place, but I know you'll be okay Jayden. You just need to survive until things quiet down, and then you'll see me again... Okay?". Jayden let out the first relaxed breath in what felt like forever, nodded, and walked to his bedroom to rest. He had a feeling he'd need all he could get for what the future held in store for him.


	2. Eclipse

**Chapter 2**

**Eclipse**

Jayden jarred himself awake. His heart jumped into his throat, and he couldn't breathe. He looked at his surroundings, adjusted to them, and then caught his breath. It had been another nightmare, another phantom stalking him in the form of a memory. Six months had passed since that fateful day, and life on Omega was being less than friendly to him, even by Omega's crooked standards. For a kid like Jayden, this place was hell. Over the course of his time, he'd been mugged, shot at, extorted, tricked, and beaten. Every lowlife and swindler had him marked, and he had an incredibly difficult time escaping them all. Fortunately enough for him, he began to acclimate to his new residence, and was beginning to learn the ropes of the place.

Jayden was learning to better control his biotic potential. He began to have a better bearing on his conscious mind, and with it, the magnitude and effects of his biotics. It was because of his biotics that he was still alive at all, and more or less managing himself on a station of criminals and killers. But all in all, things could be way worse. He was scratching together credits from odd jobs around the station, clerking stores, bodyguard duties, hell, even bartending at Afterlife. Jayden always did what he could to look at the brighter side of things, and as far as he was concerned, it could be worse, he could be dead.

Jayden started this day out the same as any other, he strolled into the markets and looked around for Adentris, a Turian that usually had bit of work for him. After a good few hours of walking about the marketplace, Adentris was nowhere to be found, which Jayden found strange. Adentris was always _somewhere _in the area, and was relatively easy to find. For him to just disappear from his usual spot made Jayden relatively uneasy, however, Jayden continued on through to the front of Afterlife. There was an incredibly long line to enter, as usual, but Jayden had no interest in the club scene unless credits were involved. He walked up the steps to one of the club's guards, a Batarian outfitted in full armor and an assault rifle, and asked "Aria hiring any extra security lately? I'm looking for a few creds".

The Batarian looked at Jayden as if he had just been slapped across his face, with a mildly angry look he replied "Aria has no place for a runt like you, Human. But I'll tell you what, if you get the hell out of my face in the next five seconds, I won't put a bullet in your head". Jayden cracked his knuckles and smirked at the guard and spoke again "I'll ask you one more time, are you sure you can't have one more guy on guard duty tonight?". The batarian raised his rifle right in Jayden's face, in response, Jayden quickly and fluently grabbed the body of the rifle, and threw it over the nearby railings. The guard then threw a punch at Jayden, who caught it in one hand, and in one motion, broke the Batarian's arm. The guard screamed in pain, alerting the guard opposite of him and the several bystanders in line. Before the second guard could be of any use, Jayden launched him into a wall with great force using a biotic push. The first guard was crippled and beaten, however, this image was simply not enough. Jayden lifted the guard into the air with his biotics, and launched him far into the endless expanse of shuttles and buildings. "Nice try, asshole." Jayden said as he descended down the steps of Afterlife, a sly and arrogant grin peeked out across his face. As he turned the corner back towards the markets, Jayden was stopped by another armed denizen of Omega. Jayden recognized him immediately, the yellow and black armor, the emblazoned "E" on the center of his chestplate, this guy was an Eclipse merc, and judging by his expensive weapons and armor, a fairly successful one.

The merc quickly removed his helmet, revealing a dark skinned, dark haired, and aged man. He spoke in a raspy and low voice "You handled yourself well against Aria's thugs kid. I'm interested to see what you're capable of, did you say you needed a job?", Jayden tried to play things off professionally "Sounds reasonable. What kinda job are we talking about?". The merc finally introduced himself "My name is Warren, I'm out here looking for new recruits for Eclipse. We don't do this very often, seeing as we try to keep things exclusive, but I think Jaroth could use your particular talents. You ever heard of a Vanguard, kid?". Vanguard, the title definitely sounded good, Jayden shook his head and continued to listen to what Warren had to say.

"Simply put kid, a biotic warrior. Security, fighting, excitement, you'll get all of that. We usually put Vanguards in small strike teams, these teams do a little bit of just about everything you can think of. Some gunfire, some business, and you'll never run out of work, so there's your job security right there for ya kid" Warren went on. Jayden took no time with his response, easy credits and the chance to use his biotics to his best potential, this one was a no-brainer. "You've got yourself a deal" he said as he shook Warren's hand.

Warren gave Jayden a pat on the shoulder and said "Alright kid, in that case, there's one requirement for Eclipse. In order to be a part of our organization, you have to complete a prelimenary job. I've lined up a job for ya, and it shouldn't be too tough to manage. But you're gonna need this first." he handed Jayden a pistol, a Hand Cannon from the looks of it. He eyed it over for a few seconds, almost in a trance before it's shimmering metallic awe. Warren continued on, "I wouldn't give this job to too many initiates, but you're gonna be a Vanguard, so you'd better get used to this kinda thing. There's this Krogan named Khaj, ex-Blood Pack merc. He's been making a whole lot of problems for us lately, doing whatever he can just to piss us off. Gunning down our men, stealing product, and butting in on our operations, which are necessary for a shithole like Omega. Guess the son of a bitch has a chip on his shoulder, something about us taking down his Krantt a few years back. He was the one that made the mistake of crossing Eclipse, and more importantly, mixing personal feelings with business".

Jayden grew anxious at the thought of getting to bring down a Krogan. He had seen so many on Omega, but was always advised to stay as far away from them as possible. Whether it was arrogance or ignorance, Jayden didn't care, he wanted a challenge, someone who would give him the fight of his life. To think this Krogan could be the one to finally push him to his limits, all of it exhilarated him. He jutted into Warren's explanation quite rudely, "I get it, I get it, where can I find him?".

Warren smirked before placing his helmet back onto his head. "What do I look like to you? A tour guide? Use your head, kid." he said as he began to walk past Jayden. He turned his head back one last time as he began to slip back into Omega's vibrant background, "I'll be in touch with you if you manage to finish the job kid, good luck" and with that, Warren vanished from sight. Jayden looked down at his weapon once again, he was going to take another life. Every life he had taken before was in self defense, but this was a deliberate killing, it was blood for money. Jayden pushed the thought to the back of his mind for the moment and closed his eyes, trying not to recall the past. "It's him or me... Mind as well be me." he said quietly as he opened his eyes, moving forward back into the Omega markets.

As he proceeded past the numerous shops and stands, he scanned around for someone that would be of use to him. His best bet would be a member of the Blood Pack, who were usually seen collecting protection money in the area. However, Jayden knew he would have to broaden his search if he couldn't find any Blood Pack mercs. Just as this thought dawned on him, a Krogan nudged into him while he was walking. The two spun around almost simultaneously and immediately stared eachother down, the Krogan making a motion for his shotgun. "You got a problem, human?" Jayden was initially agitated at the comment, but cooled down and replied "No problem, my fault entirely". Relaxing, the Krogan moved his hand away from his weapon and spoke again, "Another human without a spine, waste of space". Jayden's temper flared yet again, but he retained his aggression in the form of a question, "I actually have something to ask, if you don't mind".

Waving his arm in a dismissive motion, the Krogan stated "Then hurry up with it, I've got more important business than to dawdle with you all day". Jayden simply asked in a modest tone, "I'm looking for a Krogan named Khaj. Do you know where I can find him?". Looking down towards the floor, then back to Jayden, the Krogan replied "Looking for that bastard are you? Alright kid, since I don't much care for Khaj, I'll help you out. He's been stomping around the 300 blocks, making a real ruckus and harassing people. Even trying to extort them for credits, well, at least those that are in fear of him".

"300 blocks huh?" Jayden said as he began to set himself in motion again. He rudely ran by the Krogan and started towards the cab depot. As he shot through the markets, he began to feel a rush of excitement. He was about to fight a battle-hardened Krogan for his shot at becoming an Eclipse Vanguard. His sense of danger was completely overwhelmed by eagerness and intensity, as if nothing before this moment had truly emblazoned his spirit so fiercely.

Making a stop at the depot to finally catch his breath, he was greeted by a Turian, presumably the depot attendant. Jayden glanced over at the open cab as the Turian asked "You need a ride?". Jayden nodded and replied, "I need to get over to the 300 blocks as quickly as possible". The Turian attendant simply nodded and stepped to the side, he raised his hand and pointed to the open cab that Jayden had set his sights on earlier. Without as much as another word spoken, Jayden seated himself in the cab, input his destination, and jettisoned towards the 300 blocks.

As the cab continued on its course, Jayden took a moment to calm himself. He closed his eyes and took slow and deep breaths, he needed to focus himself and be ready for what was about to be underway. He tried to remember the oceans on Proteus, how relaxed they had made him on the hardest days, and how the salty air gave him a feeling of calmness that was unheard of in his life at this point. Just as he finally managed to center himself, the cab jolted to a halt, and Jayden opened his door and stepped out.

He was expecting the 300 blocks to be scarcely populated at best, this wasn't the case. The streets were running amok with people, conversing and running and going on with their business. Jayden was expecting things to be a bit easier than this, but the crowded are did present a viable opportunity. He would meld in with the crowd, completely inconspicuous, and attempt to take care of Khaj discretely, or when he was isolated. The thought excited Jayden, Khaj wouldn't even know what hit him.

He stepped into an assorted group of about six people, three were Asari, two Humans, and a Salarian. Jayden stuck with the group for roughly ten minutes, covering roughly 60 yards down the street. The group he was hiding away in began to dissipate, as all of the Asari and the Salarian went their separate ways. As he stepped over to a nearby corner and rested his back against it, he started to gaze out at his surroundings. The street was no less crowded than before, but it was getting late, and Jayden estimated things would begin to wind down in time. As he stood and people watched, he spotted the Salarian he was walking with earlier. The seemingly harmless bystander walked over to a group of three Krogan chatting near the entrance to one of the apartments. As the Salarian walked forward, the three Krogan halted their conversation and immediately focused on him. After a few short words, the Salarian left, and one of the Krogan walked into the nearby apartment, whereas the other two split paths and walked away.

Jayden got a feeling in his gut, that Krogan had to be Khaj, he was way too sketchy not to be. In pursuit, he hustled over to the door of the apartment and stepped inside slowly. He treaded lightly until he reached the center of the room, which is when he heard the front door slam shut. Before his very eyes, Jayden watched as several armed men stepped out from hidden locations and trained their weapons on him. It was an ambush, and he was hopelessly outnumbered. The Krogan reemerged from the back of the apartment with the two Krogan that had parted ways earlier. The Krogan Jayden pursued inside stepped forward and drew his shotgun, holding it one-handed in Jayden's direction.

The domineering and now incredibly advantageous Krogan finally spoke. "Do you take me for a fool, Human? Did you really think I had no idea you were pursuing me? You must have, seeing as you were stupid enough to get yourself in this little situation". Jayden's eyes scanned around the room, surely there was some way that he could still manage himself out of the situation. He didn't dare to reach for his weapon, that kind of sudden motion would end his life before he could blink. He continued to move his eyes about rapidly, attempting to find something that could turn the tables before it was too late. Unfortunately enough, there was nothing in sight that could possibly help him. Jayden finally began to realize that this ambush would very likely be a one way trip for him.

Jayden drooped his head and stared at the floor, "So you're Khaj huh? Guess I really _am _in deep shit" he said in a low and discouraged tone. "Damn right you're in deep shit kid. You woulda been dead the moment you walked in if it weren't for me, I still need something from you, and I _will _get it" Khaj demanded. A nearby Turian merc grabbed his weapon and threw it aside, then grabbed him and walked him outside with Khaj and his men, they walked out of the apartment and headed over to a nearby ledge. Khaj then grabbed Jayden, and held his back to the railing, as his upper half hung over the abyss of the city, Khaj began to make demands.

"You're gonna talk, and you're gonna talk fast kid. You're gonna tell me who you work for, who sent you, and every last reason why. If you don't speak up, I'll drop your sorry ass to the bottom of this forsaken asteroid" he said with aggressive intent, shaking Jayden violently. Jayden saw his chance, it was now or never, if he didn't do something soon he wouldn't live to regret it. Just as this thought occured to him, he heard the discharge of a weapon, and one of the Krogan bodyguards dropped to the ground immediately. The other guard, startled, backed up a few feet and looked at Khaj, who turned his head to investigate. Jayden took that as a sign that his time to act was now, as he kicked Khaj in the chest. Khaj dropped Jayden, and as rapidly as he could manage, Jayden grabbed the fallen bodyguard's shotgun from a few feet away with his biotics, and without missing a beat, fired into Khaj's stomach.

Jayden realized the threat was still real, as the last bodyguard immediately turned and charged towards him. Without hesitation, he hammered the Krogan with a biotic push. The guard staggered, planted his feet, and stood his ground. Jayden continued slamming away at the aggressor with as much biotic force as he could muster, but regardless of the force he used, the Krogan was unfazed. He bolted at Jayden, grabbed him off his feet, and held him over the ledge once more. Jayden looked down at the passing shuttles and taxis and began to panic, flailing his arms and legs in complete disarray. Then he heard it, a second weapon discharge, and within mere seconds, Jayden felt the grip holding him over certain doom let him loose. Luckily enough, all of that flailing finally did some good, and Jayden managed to grab his hands onto something solid, the railing became his lifeline.

He was exhausted and disoriented, but he knew he had to keep his grip at tight as possible. The railing was frigid, and slick most of all, which made keeping grip on it even more difficult. With the last bit of his strength, Jayden finally pulled himself up and flipped over the railing, landing flat on his back, knocking the air out of him. He laid there coughing and wheezing, trying to catch his breath, his vision spun about and he closed his eyes just to make it stop. He then found that to be an error all of its own, and drifted into unconsciousness.

In what seemed to only be a few moments, he awoke again. He was surrounded by unfamiliarity, his atmosphere was unknown to him. Jayden's head throbbed and his heart raced, but he couldn't manage to move himself at all. More and more he tried to find out where he was, but simply couldn't process everything at once, he must have been unconscious longer than he had thought. The face of a Salarian would be the first to greet him in this unknown place, the unknown Salarian spoke, "He looks like he's finally coming to, get him more Medi-Gel and give him some air, when he's back on his feet, make sure he comes to see me." and with those words, the Salarian vanished from his field of vision. Jayden closed his eyes once more, trying to focus elsewhere.


End file.
